Culinary Innovation Workshop, Spring Forward, Podcast Highlights

Topics in this issue of Behind the Blue:

• Culinary Innovation Workshop Drives Blueberry Inspiration
• Last Chance to Register for Spring Forward 2022!
• ‘The Business of Blueberries’ Rolls Into the Domestic Season

How does a Blueberry Cornflake Chicken Waffle Cone sound? Or maybe you’d like a Blueberry Avocado Trifle? These are just a few of the more than two dozen blueberry recipes tested and tasted at USHBC’s Culinary Innovation Workshop in Boulder, Colorado, February 16-17.

USHBC Chair Shelly Hartmann, President Kasey Cronquist and Vice President of Marketing & Communications Jennifer Sparks were joined by Jill Overdorf of Naturipe Farms, Stephanie Kleiner of Driscoll’s, Thomas Smith of California Giant Berry Farm and Steve Mowat of Field Sweet to test drive the next wave of blueberry innovation and inspiration for the USHBC foodservice program.

The strategic and mouth-watering session was hosted by Sterling-Rice Group, USHBC’s foodservice agency, and their talented chef team. Together, the assembled group established USHBC’s 2022 plan to build relationships and get blueberry innovation on the menu in K-12 schools, colleges and universities, and commercial restaurants nationwide.

“Innovation is the lifeblood of the foodservice industry and, now more than ever, short-staffed operators are looking to brands and boards for support as it relates to menu ideas,” Sparks said. “As a commodity board, we’re in a great position to partner with operators across all segments and bring them innovative ideas about the many inspiring possibilities for blueberries on menus.”

USHBC’s innovation process starts with a deep understanding of the current issues the foodservice industry is facing – from labor to inflation, rebounding traffic counts and higher costs of goods – while leaning into USHBC’s proprietary patron data, which illustrates where foodservice customers want to see more blueberries menued. We then study which sectors of the industry are growing most rapidly to identify where to focus for the most volume impact for blueberries.

From there, a team of chefs with experience in the desired sectors is formed and a large-scale brainstorm conducted, collecting hundreds of ideas across key menu platforms that align with industry and patron trends. We then distill those ideas based on their adherence to key criteria such as their ability to drive volume of blueberries if menued, fit for our identified targets, and their ability to drive the use of multiple formats of blueberries (fresh, frozen, canned, juice, etc.)

The culinary innovation culminated in the kitchen last week when USHBC and key stakeholders tasted the top 26 concepts that made it through this rigorous process. A dozen or more of the tested concepts will be professionally photographed and showcased front and center in communications, presentations, events and advertising to illustrate the best of what blueberries can do for our foodservice operator partners. Other concepts will be featured in chef-inspired recipes on USHBC’s foodservice website.

“USHBC has become a well-respected resource for menu inspiration and innovation support within the foodservice industry,” Sparks said. “And it’s this in-depth process that delivers the top-quality concepts our partners need, and that will drive blueberry volume for the industry.”